Falling Petals
by simple charm
Summary: Sakura's decided to find out whether or not she should give up on her love for Sasuke. And she's picked the easiest way to do it...


Sigh. I just _had _to write this for some reason. It's a one-shot... heh. If you feel any urge to write some sort of sequel (or prequel) to this, let me know. Because, honestly, it seems empty to me.

It's a one-sided SasuSaku, set during Naruto's two-year leave with Jiraiya. The quotes are probably not exact, just to let you know.

Disclamer: Me owning Naruto is like landing on the sun safely. It just doesn't happen.**  
**

**Xxxxxxx**

A girl of about 14 stifled a yawn as she leaned on the counter of the store, staring absently at the flowers around the store. Her long blonde hair was tied into a ponytail, and she had light blue eyes.

The door opened with a tinkling of bells, causing the blonde to look up and see her best friend, Haruno Sakura, with hair the color of the flower she was named after, and soft blue-green eyes. She had a tiny smile on her face as she explored the store, her eyes settling on a daffodil.

"Getting another flower for Lee? I hear he's still in the hospital," the blonde said, turning to ring up the price. Sakura handed her the correct amount, shaking her head at the same time.

"No," Sakura said, smiling wistfully as she stared at the flower. "I'm hoping this flower will decide my destiny."

"Destiny? Forehead-girl, you're beginning to sound like Neji!" Sakura let out a small laugh.

"Nah, don't worry about it, Ino-pig." And with that, Sakura left the store, with only the change in air pressure and the tinkling of bells signifying that she had been in the store.

**Xxxxxxx**

Sakura stood on a bridge, the former meeting place for her team, Team Seven. She stared at her reflection in the water. That forlorn, depressed expression.

Suddenly, in a rage, she splashed the water irritably, trying to erase the expression from the surface of the water. She then glanced down at the flower she clutched in her hand.

A white daffodil. Petals as white as the snow. A typical yellow center. Plain but beautiful. Simple and delicate. Other than the Sakura flowers for which she was named after, the daffodil was a flower she loved, because it could be so simple, and yet have such a delicate beauty. If only her life could be so simple...

But it could never be. She was a kunoichi, destined for a complicated life of missions. Experiencing life's ups and downs within seconds. Adapting quickly, growing rapidly. That was her life. The emotions were sometimes too much to handle.

Like guilt. Guilt for someone getting killed. Murdering someone on a mission, even though you feel their pain. Their life's pain. Walking past that monument, the white words etched into the black stone, tracing her hand over the names of the ninja that sacrificed themself for the village. It was said that dying for the village was an honor, but at what cost? They'd never see their families again. They'd never see what their deaths brought along. They'd never witness anything on the living plane again. They'd never see how their hard work helped the village. How many people had actually cared for them.

Or joy. She'd never felt so deprived of the happy moments she and her friends had shared. The only people she could truly laugh with were Naruto and Lee. But Naruto was off on a two-year training journey with Jiraiya, the 'ero-sennin' (affectionally dubbed by Naruto). Lee was... well, Lee was always too busy training. And he was currently in the Konoha hospital. So she had to settle for the fake smiles and laughter that didn't make her feel any better. It made her feel worse. Fake. But, that was her life.

Fighting for the future, living in the past.

Oh, how she wished it were different.

How she wished what had happened in the past was different. How she wished - no - _longed _for the day that Sasuke had left to have never happened.

Unfortunately for her, it had. And on that same day, she confessed her love to him.

And now, two years later, she was going to find out whether or not her love for him was unrequited. Glancing at the daffodil clutched in her hand, she plucked a petal from it gently, and released it, letting it fall into the water.

"He loves me..." The petal landed, rippling the water. She saw her reflection blur.

-

_"You should have noticed it first, Sakura. You're the best genjutsu user on our team," the dark-haired boy said._

_'Is he trying to cheer me up?' She thought hopefully. It was true, she had noticed it the instant they'd entered.  
_

_"Yeah! This is the second floor, not the third floor!" She cried triumphantly.  
_

_- _

"He loves me not." Another white petal slipped from her hand, falling into the water.

-

_"Sasuke-kun, will you go out with me?" The twelve year-old asked hopefully._

_"No. You're worse than Naruto." Inside her mind, Inner Sakura was crushed by a rock that said 'worse than Naruto' on it. Dejected, she turned to walk off._

_"Hey! Sakura-chan! Can I go out with you?" The subject of her newfound depression asked excitedly._

_"No, Naruto." She walked off, depressed, leaving behind a heartbroken boy._

-

She'd never really paid much attention to Naruto when he demanded her attention, instead she'd shove him aside. Guilt welled up inside her again. She shook her head frantically, trying to get back to her flower. 

"He loves me..." She gently tugged another petal off the stem, letting it fall into the water. She watched it float off.

-

_"Sasuke-kun!" Desperation. That was all she felt. She just wanted him to snap out of whatever state he was in. She sank to her knees when she reached him, letting her arms wrap around his torso. The black marks on his face; his arms. 'Go away!' She screamed at the marks inwardly. 'Go away!'_

_Sasuke stiffened as her arms wrapped around his body. What... what had he been doing? The back of his shirt felt wet, getting stained with the pink-haired girl's tears.  
_

_-  
_

"He loves me not." She watched the white petal float along the currents in the air, before landing gently in the water.

-

_Sakura threw her hands in the air in irritation. "I mean, he doesn't get it! Just because he grew up with no parents doesn't mean he needs to act like that! I mean, my parents are always making sure I don't do ridiculous things like that! Wouldn't you agree, Sasuke-kun?" He turned to glare harshly at her._

_"If I was like Naruto, my parents would be furious," she continued. "I'd be in trouble for months! Naruto just does whatever he feels like doing, because he has no parents to tell him what to do! He's selfish and bratty, and - and all alone!" Sasuke's eyes narrowed. _

_"You don't get it at all. Alone... Isolated... it's not about parents telling you from right or wrong. You have no idea what it's like being alone."_

_"What? Sasuke-kun, why are you saying that?"_

_"Because. You're annoying." And with those three words, she made a resolve. She'd be a better person. No matter what it took._

-_  
_

Smiling wistfully at the memory, she stared at the sky. She'd never improved as much as she'd wanted to. And thinking back then, she'd felt like such an idiot. 

_'Heh, that was me. Talking before I thought about it. How could I have forgotten?'_ How _could_ she have forgotten? The Uchiha massacare. She'd heard stories about it in the news. How everyone was killed but one. The murderer's little brother.

Uchiha Sasuke.

"He loves me..." Slowly releasing the petal, she watched it drift along the air currents, landing in the water.

-

_"Don't leave! If you leave, I'll scream and -" Suddenly, he vanished, appearing behind her. Tears streamed down her face.  
_

_"Sakura... arigatou." She felt a sharp pain._

_'Sasuke... kun...' There was a thump as she hit the ground._

-

She glanced down at the flower, smiling sadly. One more petal.

"He loves me... not..." It spiraled as it fell, landing gently in the water.

-

_"After all this time, you're still annoying." A smirk spread across her face as he said that._

_"You're annoying," he snapped at her._

_"Leave me alone. You're annoying, Sakura."_

_- _

The random flashes of memories raced through her mind.

_'In the end, all I was to him was annoying...' _She smiled bitterly, staring at the clouds in the sky as tears began streaming down her face.

_'...and nothing more.'_ Her hand released the stem of the former daffodil, now without its petals. It landed in the water and floated.

"F-from this day o-on," she whispered to herself, sniffling, "I g-give up on m-my love to Sasuke-k-kun." No, not 'Sasuke-kun' anymore, now it was just Sasuke.

"S-sasuke." She ammended, wiping her eyes frantically, trying to calm down and stop crying.

"Sakura-san!" A voice called out. Sakura turned to see a familiar boy in a chunnin vest, wearing green spandex. He had bandages wrapped around his head, but other than that, he looked fine.

"Lee-san! When did you become a chunnin?" They'd taken the chunnin exam recently, both of them together, along with some of the other people who'd graduated with them. That had been why he was in the hospital. It looked as if he'd just been released.

"Just now! I got my vest today! And Hokage-sama wanted to give you yours!"

"W-who else got their vest?" She asked curiously, still sniffling quietly.

"Tenten, Chouji and Ino!" So, she and Ino had tied again.

"Now my entire team is chunnin or higher! And Neji is trying to find a way into the jounin exam!" At that point, Lee reached her and frowned deeply, seeing her crying face.

"Sakura-san? What's wrong? Why are you crying? You should be enjoying your youth!" Sakura smiled weakly at him, wiping the tears away.

"Sakura-san?" He asked again, looking closely at her face. Her smile widened, and she stopped crying.

"I'm fine, Lee-san. You don't need to worry about me." Unconvinced, he nodded anyways, and turned to leave.

"I will be seeing you later, Sakura-san! Good bye!" He darted off for the forest, most likely to try and find his jounin sensei, Maito Gai. Sakura headed off to the hokage office, without glancing back at the river.

But if she had, she would've seen six white petals floating on the surface, surrounding a stem and what was left of the flower on it.

_He loves me..._

_Or not?_

_I guess that's just the way it'll be..._

_Unrequited..._

_What a shame... _

**Xxxxxxx**

Wow. My first one-shot.

Was it any good?**  
**


End file.
